Tony Mowbray fears Wolves Bak-lash

It’s very different, and difficult, for managers and players when they come into the league for the first time

Middlesbrough boss Tony Mowbray

Mowbray’s third-placed Boro face Wolves at the Riverside today ­determined to bounce back from Wednesday’s Capital One Cup defeat at Swansea.

But he believes the fixture carries extra danger now that ­Norwegian Solbakken, a shock ­appointment last summer, is ­beginning to learn how to deal with the unique ­demands of the ­Championship.

Wolves have bounced back from a run of three points in nine games with two wins.

And Mowbray said: “There are not many leagues as tough as this one.

‘‘You seem to play every three days for 10 months and it is a big shift for the players compared to the quality of the Premier League because the Championship is very intense.

“Experience helps a manager deal with that. I’ve been at West Brom and gone through a 46-game season and also got to an FA Cup semi-final in that as well, and you have to learn how to manage all those games.

“You have to keep the team positive and make sure they keep believing and performing.

“It’s very different, and difficult, for managers and players when they come into the league for the first time, like the manager of Wolves at the moment and some of the foreign players he has signed.

“They will be finding that out. You have to perform at your peak, then give the players enough rest and ­recovery to go again.

“As a manager you have an ideal that you like to watch the opposition, sort the tactics out and work on the training ground to give the players a game plan.

‘‘This week Wolves will have been able to do that, but not us.

“I watched Wolves on DVD before I went to bed after the Swansea game on Wednesday night.

‘‘Then I get one day preparation on Friday to give the team an idea of what’s coming and see if we can go and beat them – experience helps you to handle that.”

Boro defenders Seb Hines, Jonathan Woodgate and Andre Bikey will have late fitness tests as well as skipper Grant Leadbitter, who was injured at Swansea.

Mowbray added: “That’s why you need a decent squad, to have players who can come in and do a job.”